


Girl of Fever

by Lapomme (KillTheDirector)



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Grief, Music, Music instructor Link, Semi-mute Link, Using alcohol as a coping mechanism, slowish burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-26
Updated: 2017-05-26
Packaged: 2018-11-05 01:57:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11003598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KillTheDirector/pseuds/Lapomme
Summary: After the death of her father, Zelda begins to spiral into a pit of depression. Acting on a moment of spontinatity, she hires a silent music instructor named Link to reteach her how to play the harp.





	Girl of Fever

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first LOZ fic ever, but I really enjoyed BOTW and Link and Zelda's relationship.

The clink of wine bottles long empty woke her up when she turned over in bed. A dull headache throbbed behind her eyes as she stared out at the messy room, dust gathering on books and scattered notes while dancing pirouettes in a soft ray of sunlight. 

A tacky acidic taste glued her tongue to the roof of her mouth, and with a grimace she sat up in bed. A wine bottle fell with a thunk and a soft sloshing noise; red began to sluggishly spill onto a chipped and splintering wooden floor while her raggedy carpet eagerly soaked it up. "Shit." She breathed, jumping faster than she wanted in order to toss a pile of dirty towels over the stain in an attempt to clean it. 

A sharp whimper ripped out of her throat when her headache worsened upon standing. Holding a cool hand against her forehead, she surveyed the damage with squinted eyes. 

Empty bottles and spilled wine, dirty clothes and dusty books. 

With a long sigh, she turned away from the mess and pulled on a sweater that didn't smell too bad, leaving the black leggings she had been wearing for the past three days on. 

She shut the door to the bedroom, the mess--other than the thick coat of dust--not traveling beyond that into the rest of the house. The stairs groaned under her weight and sighed as she stepped off of them and into her rarely used living room. 

The large harp she had used to play almost everyday sat forgotten in the corner of the room, gathering dust and out of tune since the day her father had died. It hurt to look at it, so she turned away. 

He had wanted her to go to school for it, to play in the city's orchestra. _"You have such talent, my girl."_ he used to say, exasperation in his voice when she would lock herself away to focus on other things.

She walked into her kitchen and opened the refrigerator; she already knew there wasn't much in the way of food, only a few hunks of cheese gathering mold in the back and a half gallon of milk. A sigh rolled out of her mouth as she shut the door, her headache worsening the longer she thought about it. 

She would have to go to the grocery store, it was no longer avoidable. 

()() 

It had been a few months since her father had died and had left her the large house she had used to call home. It felt empty without his booming voice filling the spaces, though she supposed she never really felt at home there since her mother had died. 

Her father had been a jovial man when her mother had been alive, not pushing her into things that he thought best suited for her like he did later in life. She hadn't visited often after she graduated and left home, only calling when it was necessary--birthdays and holidays. He hadn't told her that he was sick, and the next thing she knew...he was gone. 

Zelda squinted when she entered the grocery store and had to take off her sun glasses. Thankfully the headache medicine she had dry swallowed before coming had began to kick in, so her head only lightly throbbed. Her mouth still tasted foul, but she ignored it and grabbed a cart. 

Her shoulder bumped into something warm and solid, making a rather undignified yelp tumble from her lips. She turned, her light eyebrows furrowed. A man stared down at her with wide blue eyes, his hands hovering over the poster he had been tacking to the bulletin board. 

Zelda cleared her throat, her face heating as he continued to silently stare at her. "E-excuse me." She huffed, swiftly turning away. 

She shoved thoughts of wide blue eyes and handsome men out of her head as she marched down the asiles. Her cart was quickly filled with essentials, and she only felt slightly guilty when she pulled a few bottles of wine from the shelf to place amongst her food. 

Going to the shop and then to home had been her routine for the past few months. She had been left a large inheritance along with the house, so she hadn't worried about money. Her college degree had been in biology with a minor in history; she had wanted to teach, but those dreams had been put on hold whilst she sorted through her father's things. 

The check out girl gave her a large smile that Zelda tried to replicate, but she was sure the bags under her eyes made her a rather ghoulish sight. _That was probably why that man was staring..._ She thought with a snort as she gathered her bags. _I wonder what he was hanging...?_

She told herself that she wasn't disappointed that the man wasn't still at the bulliten board by the time she walked over. Zelda's eyes traced over the many pieces of paper hanging there; lost dogs, roommate wanted, furniture for sale, music instructor--Her gaze paused. Shifting her bags to one hand, Zelda took a step closer to the board.

_**Music Instruction by Link.** _

_**Need help learning how to play an instrument? Want to brush up on some old skills? Need another ear to tell if you're playing right? I'm your man!** _

_**Services $15/hr** _

_**Please call or text: (xxx) xxx-xxxx** _

Zelda bit the inside of her cheek, her eyes tracing over the photocopied sheet of paper. The handwriting wasn't particularly neat, nor was it overly messy and there was a charming little drawing of an array of instruments in the corner. She thought of the harp sitting untouched in the corner of her living room and then thought of the monotony of her current life. 

With a small huff, Zelda dug out her phone and took a picture of the poster.


End file.
